DECEMBER 2021
1 December – the female remains on the ledge until 4:25 when she quickly searches the platform for scraps. She flies off at 7:05 and is replaced by the male ten minutes later; he leaves at 7:30. There is no further activity until the female returns at 18:45 with fresh Snipe prey which she stashes by a column, then flies off. She is back 30 minutes later and checks her stash then settles on the ledge with a full crop, obviously having previously fed well. She remains until midnight at least.
2 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 6:00 when she flies off. She returns with the male at 7:25 but he soon leaves as she prevents him from snatching the stashed Snipe. She flies off and the male is back five minutes later to search the box and finds the meal. He plucks and feeds on the Snipe then flies off with it at 7:50 as the female arrives. She leaves after checking out for scraps on the platform. She is back briefly at 8:35 and again at 9:10 for five minutes. She returns clutching fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 14:40 but leaves with it a few minutes later. She flies at 20:00 with fresh Redwing prey which she stashes and then flies out. At 21:30 she is back with another Redwing which she also stashes, then settles on the ledge until midnight at least.
3 December – the female remains on the ledge until 00:15 when she retrieves one of the stashed Redwings and feeds on her meal. She has finished 30 minutes later and returns to the ledge. She leaves at 7:00 and is back at 8:10 with another Feral Pigeon prey which she plucks and eats on the platform. She has finished feeding at 9:15 and stashes the remains by a column. She flies off and is immediately replaced by the male. He spots the stash, takes hold, and flies off with it. The female is back at 14:45 and picks the second stashed Redwing from the previous evening and eats it on the platform. She flies off at 15:10 and returns to the ledge an hour later with a full crop. She takes a quick flight at 19:15 then settles down for the evening.
4 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 6:35 when she flies off. The pair fly into the box at 7:15; the male leaves a few minutes later but quickly returns. He sits on the ledge as the female picks at scraps on the platform, then she sits on the opposite ledge until 7:30 when she flies off. The male goes into the box when the female returns with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 7:45 which she plucks and eats on the platform. She has finished feeding at 8:40 and flies off with her stash; the male follows a few minutes later. The female is back in the box at 12:30, then moves to the ledge, flying off 35 minutes later. The male arrives at 13:15 and feeds on scraps for ten minutes, then sits on the ledge. The female is back at 14:05 and the male flies off. She moves to the ledge and flies off at 15:25, returning 30 minutes later, remaining for the rest of the evening.
5 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until flying off at 7:30. The male replaces her on the ledge and goes into the box when she returns carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 7:55 which she plucks and eats on the platform. The male flies out at 7:20 and she stashes her meal by a column five minutes later. The male immediately flies in and grabs the pigeon and feeds on it. He has finished at 9:20, stashes the remains and flies out. The female is back at 13:15 and feeds on the pigeon. There is little left at 14:00 when she flies off. The male is back at 16:00 and picks at scraps on the platform before flying off ten minutes later. He is back on the ledge at 23:50.
6 December – the male remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 7:30 when scours the platform for scraps. He is back on the ledge at 7:45 but flies off when the female arrives with Feral Pigeon prey at 8:00. She plucks and eats it on the platform. She stashes the remains 45 minutes later and flies off. The male arrives at 9:10 and starts to feed on the stash. He finishes eating at 10:00, stashes the remains and flies off. The female is back at 13:05, grabs the stash and feeds on it. There is little left 30 minutes later and she leaves it by a column and sits on the ledge with a full crop, then flies off at 13:55. There is no further activity until 23:05 when the female flies in with Redwing prey which she stashes by a column. She then sits on the ledge until at least midnight.
7 December – the female goes into the box when the male joins her at 01:10. He picks up some scraps from the platform then notices the stashed Redwing. A call from the female makes him back off and he returns to the ledge and falls asleep. He wakens at 5:15 and temptation is too much; he feeds on the Redwing. He is back on the ledge 15 minutes later and resumes his sleep. The female is sleeping in the box oblivious to his action, wakens at 6:20 and moves to the ledge briefly before returning to the box. The male flies off at first light at 7:40 and the female walks to the platform and looks for scraps; she leaves at 8:00. She is back at 14:45 and goes into the box where she remains until 15:30 when she moves to the ledge, flying off 15 minutes later. She returns at 22:15 with Redwing prey and eats it on the platform, moving to the ledge at 22:40 where she remains for the rest of the evening.
8 December – at 1:50, the female finds some scraps on the platform to feed on. She then shelters in the box from the strong winds of Storm Barra and falls asleep. The male arrives at 7:45 and the female flies out. He also searches for scraps on the platform for five minutes, then sits on the ledge. He goes into the box when the female returns with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 8:00. She plucks and feeds whilst he watches. She has finished feeding at 8:50 and flies off with the remains. The male walks to the platform to watch her go, then follows – no doubt looking for an easy meal. There is no more activity on camera today.
9 December – the female arrives at 5:45 and sits on the platform until 6:30 when she takes a short flight – probably hunting. She takes another flight five minutes later. The male joins her at 7:25 and they go into the box where there is a brief bonding period before they swap places. He checks for stashed prey but flies out after not finding any; the female quickly follows him. The pair are back at 7:50, the female carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey. He soon flies off and she follows carrying her meal. She returns at 8:05 and plucks and feeds on the pigeon, stashing the remains 40 minutes later. She goes into the box as the male arrives. He grabs the pigeon and flies off and she quickly follows. The female is back at 15:30 for ten minutes and returns at 16:15 and goes into the box after 15 minutes. She moves back to the ledge at 20:20 remaining until midnight at least.
10 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 6:05 when she flies off. The male flies in 40 minutes later and picks at scraps on the platform until flying off at 8:00. The female returns at 8:55 with fresh Feral Pigeon prey which she drags into the box. She starts feeding on it at 9:10 and stashes the remains at 9:50; she flies off five minutes later. The male lands briefly at 10:45 but already looks well fed. The pair land together at 13:45; she goes into the box as he grabs the stash and flies off with it. She sits on the ledge with a full crop until 15:45 when she flies off. There is no further activity today.
11 December – at 6:25, the female arrives with very fresh Feral Pigeon prey which she plucks and eats on the platform. She stashes her meal by a column at 7:05 and sits on the ledge, then flies off at 7:40. She returns at 16:00 to retrieve her meal and feeds on the platform for 25 minutes, then returns to the ledge with a full crop. She remains on the ledge for the rest of the evening.
12 December – the female remains on the ledge until 7:35 when she goes into the box on the arrival of the male. He spies the stashed pigeon, snatches it and flies off; the female quickly follows. She does not return until 15:15 when she searches the box and platform for food, then sits on the ledge before flying off an hour later. The female lands on the ledge at 20:45 and takes a quick flight at 22:30 returning with very fresh Redwing prey which she stashes, then flies off. The male lands briefly at 22:40 but ignores the stashed meal as he already looks well fed. The female returns with another Redwing at 22:55 which she also stashes. She is back at 23:10 with her third Redwing of the evening; this too is stashed and she flies off.
13 December – the pair arrive together at 7:30 and go into the box. The male leaves quickly, grabbing one of the Redwing on the way out. The female feeds on one of the others, then flies off. She returns at 8:15 with fresh Feral Pigeon prey which she plucks and feed on the platform. She flies off in haste at 8:35 leaving the partially eaten pigeon on the platform. She resumes feeding some five hours later, then stashes the remains at 14:10. She sits on the ledge with a full crop. The male arrives at 15:10 and she goes into the box; he grabs the pigeon and flies off and she follows. There is no further activity this evening.
14 December – the female flies in with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 8:25 and stashes the remains at 9:20. The male arrives at 10:30 and, despite there being Redwing and Feral Pigeon available, he picks at scraps on the platform. He grabs the pigeon 15 minutes later and feeds on it. He finishes eating at 11:10 and stashes the remains in the box, then flies off to be replaced by the well-fed female; she does not remain long. She returns at 15:50 and picks at scraps then picks up the Redwing and eats it. She returns to the ledge and remains until at least midnight.
15 December – the female goes into the box at 3:50 and picks up the stashed pigeon. She drags it onto the platform and feeds on it, then moves to the ledge at 4:30, flying off at 6:00. She is back briefly at 7:50 and at 8:35 returns to feed on the stashed pigeon. She flies off with the remains 15 minutes later. The male lands at 9:05 and calls loudly to something flying overhead, then flies off. He is back briefly at 9:30 and at 10:40 returns to pick at scraps on the platform; he flies off at 11:05. The pair are back at 12:10, the female goes into the box, the male again picking at scraps. He flies off when the female moves to the platform a few minutes later; she soon follows. She lands at 16:05 and settles on the ledge until 20:00 when she flies off. She is back 45 minutes later carrying fresh Redwing prey which she stashes before leaving. She returns with a Starling at 23:05 which she also stashes before sitting on the ledge for the rest of the evening.
16 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 7:40 when she flies off. She is back at 8:05 with Feral Pigeon prey which she stashes by a column and then flies off. There is no further activity on camera today.
17 December – the male flies in at 6:45 and picks up the stashed Redwing from yesterday. He flies off with it when the female arrives ten minutes later. She grabs yesterdays stashed pigeon and plucks and half-heartedly eats it on the platform. She stashes the remains at 7:25 and flies off. At 10:25, the female flies in with a half-eaten Feral Pigeon which she stashes next to the one from yesterday. She flies off a few minutes later and is replaced by the male. He grabs the latest stashed pigeon and feeds on it – no doubt having watched the female fly on to the platform. He finishes eating at 11:00 and stashes what is left, then flies off. There is no further activity thereafter.
18 December – the female flies in at 7:55 and goes into the box calling for a few minutes, then flies out. The male arrives five minutes later and grabs the original pigeon and feeds on it. He has finished eating at 8:35 and sits on the ledge before flying off. The female returns at 15:15 and grabs a pigeon to feed on. She stashes the remains 20 minutes later and flies off at 15:40. There is no further activity on camera.
19 December – the male lands at 7:45 and feeds on one of the two stashed pigeons. He settles on the ledge 30 minutes later, then flies off at 8:25. He is back at 13:30 and continues feeding on the first pigeon. He has finished 15 minutes later and picks up the second pigeon and feeds on that until 14:10 when he flies off. There is no further activity today.
20 December – the female flies in with Feral Pigeon prey at 8:55 but leaves with it a few minutes later. She is back at 9:15 with her now partially-eaten meal which she stashes by a column, then flies off. At 11:50, the male flies in and tries to grab the stashed pigeon but is forced off quickly by the arriving female. She feeds on her meal until 12:20 when she stashes the remains. She goes into the box when the male arrives ten minutes later, he snatches her meal and flies off and she follows. There is no further activity today.
21 December – the female arrives at 13:05 and picks at some scraps on the platform before sitting on the ledge. She goes into the box when the male flies in at 13:25. After a few moments bonding, she flies out and he picks at scraps. He sits on the ledge at 13:35 and flies off 15 minutes later. The female is back on the ledge at 14:40 and sees a stashed Redwing that had been ignored due to being covered in pigeon feathers. She plucks and feeds on it until 15:25 when she stashes what little is left. She then sits on the ledge until 16:30 when she picks at more scraps on the platform, then finds the second Redwing in the box and feeds on that for 15 minutes. She then returns to the ledge until 19:35 when she resumes feeding on the second Redwing for 20 minutes. She returns to the ledge remaining until midnight at least.
22 December – the female remains sleeping on the ledge from the previous evening until 3:30 when she flies off. The pair arrive together at 6:40 and there is a brief period of calling until the female finds some scraps to feed on. She goes into the box at 6:50 as the male sits on the ledge until 7:20 when he flies off. The female leaves 35 minutes later and the male returns and feeds on the remnants of the two Redwing, then sits on the ledge. The female is back at 9:20 and the pair go into the box. The male flies out quickly and the female a few minutes later. She is back briefly at 12:10, returning at 13:20, then flying off at 13:55. She returns at 16:20 and goes into the box 15 minutes later preening and making scrapes. She falls asleep at 18:10 and remains for the rest of the evening.
23 December – the female moves from the box to the ledge at 5:50 and flies off at 7:05. The male lands ten minutes later looking for scraps, then sits on the ledge. The female flies in with fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 9:05 and the male flies off. She plucks and feeds on the pigeon and stashes the remains at 9:40 and sits on the ledge looking well fed. She goes into the box at 10:15, then collects her meal and resumes feeding for 20 minutes and stashes the remains. She returns to the box to protect her meal with the male lands at 12:00 flying off with it at 12:15. She must have stashed it as she returns a few moments later. After a quick greeting in the box, the male flies off and the female sits on the ledge. She leaves at 16:00 returning after ten minutes remaining until 20:35. She is back at 21:15 carrying Fieldfare prey which she stashes and then moves back to the ledge.
24 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 7:05 when she starts to feed on her meal. She moves back to the ledge at 7:30 and goes into the box 15 minutes later when the male arrives. There is calling between the pair for five minutes, then he tries to steal her meal, but she is too quick and manages to protect it. She flies at him with her meal and they both leave. He is quickly back on the ledge but moves into the box on the return of the female at 8:00. She joins him for a few minutes bonding before he flies off at 8:05 and she moves to the ledge. She is back in the box five minutes later when the male returns before moving to the ledge. They sit opposite each other for the next 90 minutes when the female flies off. The male remains preening and dozing until leaving at 12:25. He is back after 20 minutes but is replaced by the female a few minutes later; she leaves at 13:00. She returns carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey at 13:35 which she plucks and eats on the platform. She stashes the remains at 14:05 and flies off. There is no further activity today.
25 December: Merry Christmas – the female flies in at 4:05, goes into the box and feeds on the stashed pigeon. She finishes eating 30 minutes later, stashes the remains and shelters in the box. She moves to the ledge briefly at 6:45 but returns to the box until 7:55 when she resumes feeding on her meal. Something overhead disturbs her, and she flies off at 8:10. She does not return until 13:20 when she resumes feeding, then moves to the ledge after 20 minutes. The male arrives at 13:45 and the pair go into the box for a brief moment of bonding. But the male is looking for an easy meal and finds the stashed pigeon and flies off with it; the female leaves at 14:00. There is no further activity today.
26 December – the female arrives at 5:45 and goes into the box. She moves to the ledge two hours later and flies out at 8:00. The male arrives at 8:20 and sits on the ledge until 8:45 when he flies off. The female is back at 11:40 remaining for 20 minutes. The male returns at 14:10 and picks at scraps on the platform, then sits on the ledge as the female flies in. She goes to ‘greet’ him and he flies off when she gets too close; she quickly follows. The male is back briefly at 15:00 but there is no activity thereafter.
27 December – the male flies in at 6:35 and sits on the ledge until 7:20 when he briefly picks at scraps on the platform, then returns to the ledge. The female flies into the box at 8:35 and the male joins her. There are a few moments of calling and bonding before the male flies out; the female follows quickly. The male is back for five minutes at 10:45 but there is no further activity thereafter.
28 December – the pair land together at 7:50, the female carrying fresh Feral Pigeon prey. She mantles her meal to protect it from the male. She waits for ten minutes before starting to pluck and feed; the male watches from the ledge. She flies off with her meal at 9:00 and the male picks at scraps on the platform for ten minutes, then sits on the ledge until he flies off at 10:00. The female returns at 13:00 and is quickly followed by the male. She goes into the box and there is calling and chipping between the pair. She makes a scrape in the stone whilst he sits on the ledge. After five minutes, she sits opposite him until they fly off together at 13:50. The female is back at 15:00 but only stays for five minutes. She returns at 20:40 carrying very fresh Fieldfare prey which she stashes by a column, then flies off. She is back at 23:05 with another Fieldfare which is also stashed, then sits on the ledge until flying off at 23:35.
29 December – the female flies in at 1:15 and sits on the ledge until the male arrives at 1:50. She grabs one of the stashed Fieldfares and mantles it, flicking her wings to protect it from the male. He sits on the ledge watching but cannot see the other Fieldfare. She starts to feed at 2:00 and has finished eating at 3:35 and moves to the ledge; they both fall asleep. She moves to the box at 6:40 whilst the male continues to doze on the ledge. He looks for scraps on the platform at 7:45, not seeing the stashed Fieldfare, then returns to the ledge. She flies out at 8:05 and he takes a short flight at 8:20. On his return notices the stashed prey and drags it onto the platform but he is distracted by something and flies out at 8:30. The female returns with Feral Pigeon prey at 9:05 and plucks and feeds on the platform. She stashes the remains at 10:10 and flies off 20 minutes later. She is back at 15:55 and ignores her two stashed meals, as she is well fed, and remains until 20:00. She is back again at 23:40 and sits on the ledge until midnight at least.
30 December – the female remains on the ledge from the previous evening until 6:50 when she flies off. She returns a few minutes later carrying very fresh prey – a white Feral Pigeon; this must have stood out flying around in the morning darkness. She plucks and feeds on her meal, then drags the remains into the box at 7:25 and sits on the ledge until 8:10 when she flies off. The male lands a few minutes later and goes into the box but before he can get to the pigeon, the female flies in and secures her meal. She drags it back onto the platform and the male makes do with some scraps ignoring the two other items. She feeds on the white pigeon as he watches from the ledge. She flies off with the remains at 8:45 and he follows. The female returns briefly at 10:30 but ignores the stashed prey. She is back again at 14:05 and sits on the ledge until 15:35 when she grabs the stashed pigeon and feeds on the platform. She stashes the remains at 15:55 and returns to the ledge with a full crop, remaining until at least midnight.
31 December – the female remains on the ledge until 3:05 when she gets peckish and drags the pigeon onto the platform and feeds for 20 minutes before returning to the ledge. She flies off at 8:15 and returns 20 minutes later and goes into the box before moving to the ledge. She flies off at 8:45 and returns a few minutes later with the male. There are a few moments calling between the pair, then the male picks up some scraps and flies off; the female follows him. The female is back at 14:40 and feeds on the pigeon remains; ignoring the pristine Fieldfare that is still on the platform. She moves to the ledge 30 minutes later, then into the box. She quickly returns to the ledge and flies out. She is back soon after and goes into the box where she remains making scrapes and moving stones until 15:55 when she moves to the ledge, flying off at 17:15. She is back at 23:05 and flies out at midnight; I wonder if the New Year Celebrations caused her to leave the platform.